Adjustable corn picker snout



2 SheetsShee't1 1 Dec. 19, 1950 L. SPRAKER ADJUSTABLE CORN PICKER SNOUT Filed April 22, 1948 INVENTOR- BY flu Les/er L. Spraker M MM Dec. 19, 1950 SPRAKER 2,534,481

ADJUSTABLE CORN PICKER SNOUT Filed April 22, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q Lester L. Spraker a INVENTOR.

Patented Dec. 19, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE CORN PICKER SNOUT Lester L. Spraker, Eaton, Ohio Application April 22, 1948, Serial No. 22,692

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates generally to corn pickers, and more particularly to a corn picker snout assembly for use with a corn picker mounted on a tractor.

A primary object of this invention is to provide means whereby the corn picker may be more rigidly secured on the tractor than have conventional corn pickers been secured heretofore, While allowing for vertical adjustment of the forward end of the corn picker, and adjustable snouts are pivotally mounted on the said forward end of the corn picker, so that corn stalks and ears positioned near the ground or on the ground may be gathered by the picker, the said adjustable snout being preferably located well in front of the front wheel or wheels of the tractor, whereby a higher percentage of the total crop is harvested.

Another object of this invention is to provide corn picker snouts of improved design and which will operate with a higher efficiency than the snouts provided heretofore on corn pickers, these improved snouts including skid plates on the front end thereof and having wear plates extending longitudinally along the lower edges thereof.

Still another object of this invention is to design a corn picker snout which may be secured to differently shaped and proportioned corn pickers with a minimum amount of special adaptation.

And a last object to be mentioned specifically is to provide a corn picker snout assembly which is relatively inexpensive and practicable to manufacture, which is extremely simple to install and to use, which makes provision for control by levers positioned near the operator of the tractor on which the corn picker is mounted, and which will give generally efficient and durable service.

With these objects definitely in view, this invention resides in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangements of elements and portions as will be hereinafter described in the specification, particularly pointed out in the appended claim and illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a material part of this application, and in which:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of a portion of a tractor with this invention incorporated on a corn picker which is also fragmentarily shown as mounted upon the tractor;

Figure 2 is a left hand side elevational view, of fragmentary character, of the tractor illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the adjustable shout and a portion of a link used to control the same;

Figure 4 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of this snout, this View being taken substantially on the section line 4-4 and looking in the direction of the arrows in Figure 3;

Figure 5 is an enlarged view of the control lever assembly; and

Figure 6 is a view of a cross bar structure carried by the lower end of the control lever and associated with the said links.

Similar characters of reference designate similar or identical elements and portions throughout the specification and throughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring now the drawings in detail, this invention is adapted to be used with an environment including a tractor generally indicated by the numeral It and having a frame l2, an axle housing M, an axle l6 and rear wheels l8 and front wheels 20.

The corn picker fragmentarily shown in Figures l and 2 will ordinarily be duplicated on the other side of the tractor, it being thought unnecessary to illustrate this duplicated structure. The corn picker on each side of the tractor has a snout assembly including a bifurcated member 22, the arms 24 of which are pointed as at 25 at their front end. The corn picker is pivotally mounted by means of U-members 28 and 39 to the axle l6 and to the axle housing [4, according to conventional practice, and the forward ends of the arms are adjustably mounted on the frame I2 by the depending angle iron members 32, together with horizontal members 34 which may be welded to the lower ends of the depending members 32 and to the adjacent portions of the inner of each pair of arms '24 on each side of the machine.

In order to make the pickers adjustable, each depending member 32 is provided with a plurality of apertures 33 to receive headed bolts 38 which are screwed into threaded holes in the frame l2. Snouts, generally indicated by the numeral 56, are each of similar design, being of inverted U- shape in cross section and pointed at their forward ends 62. Skid plates 44 are welded or otherwise rigidly mounted on the front ends 42, and wear plates 45 are riveted or welded or bolted, as indicated at Al, to the lower longitudinal edges of each snout 49. These wear plates 45 extend throughout the major portion of the length of each snout and constitute a reinforcing means as well as wear plates.

Pivotally secured to the forward ends of the arms 24 by transversely disposed axis pins 48, these snouts are shiftable so that the forward ends 42 thereof may be raised and lowered. The axis pins 18 are inserted through apertured supporting plates 5& on the arms 24 and are terminally secured to other supporting plates 52 welded or otherwise secured, as indicated at 53, on the lower edges of the shouts, the wear plates 56 serving to make the attachment of the plates. 52 more rigid.

The reinforcing stra 54 is riveted or otherwise secured, as at 56, on the upper portion of inyention. 'may be made in the exact structural details and ,the proportionment of the various elements of each snout and the rear end 58 of thisstrapis bent downwardly and apertured to receive a hoql; end 69 of a link E52 which will be of inflexible rod character. The links 52 extend through rapier tures 6d and 65 in the forward and rear upper part of the arms 24 and these links traverse the arms interiorly so as m avoid contact with the stalks of corn passing over the upper portions ofthesearms. i, The rear ends of the links 82 are adjustably. connected tothe crossbar 88,. preferably of, angle iron structure, which is carried ,bythe lower end of a. lever is, and thisrlever is. pivoted on the member '52 securedto any ,suitablefixed structuresuch as theaxle housing 54.. A memberJ-TZ will, of course, carry a singleleverflfi and this single lever will control a pair of links 32 and the corresponding pair of adjustable shouts. The member 52 may begprovided with a toothed rack portion 14 and the lever if? ,Inayhave ,a spring biased, lug is with suitable means fo -releasing the same, as indicated at i5, the spring asso elated therewith, being indicated atfifil,

El,0l11 the foregoing it will be, clear that a ,very practical and satisfactory corn picker snoutassembly has been provided which wiilallow the arms id to be adjusted to a height above the ground higher thaninronventional machines, with the obvious beneficial result, that the corn picker per sewill not bees likely to become darnaged, while the adjustablesnoutsallow the corn to be s t sf t ly athered om p si n or near the ground.v It will be understood that the snout may be of considerable lengthiand will project preferably well aheadof the front wheels 2!} ofthe tractor so that these wheels have no opportunity to mash the fallen stalks of corn into the ground before the adjustable snouts raise the same into the corn picker: The whole 'tliei'eoffwliich scope should be determined only 4 assembly may, of course, be adjusted by removing the headed bolt 38 and raising or lowering the depending member 32 and thereafter reinserting the headed bolt through the apertures 36 when the depending member is at the correct position.

The general operation of the machine will be clearly understood by those skilled in agricultural pursuits, when this description is taken in fidnnectioliwith the drawings and with the recitation of objects" thought to be achieved by this Obviously many minor variations this invention without departure from the spirit as ,lin iteduby a proper interpretation of the "terminology used the subjoined claim.

Havihg' described the what is claimed as new is: n A eornplckelf snout assembly for use with a corn picker, mounted on the frame of a tractor, cQWDIisinga bifurcatedmember having the arms thereof pointed toward the front of the tractor, means for aidjllsllably'securingsaid member on th -fr me of tract s!) th t th a ms are t a predetermined height aboye the ground, snouts mounted on said armsfor pivotal movement, and means,iorpiyotally shifting said shouts together, said means comprising, alever pivoted on said frame of ,the tractor, and inflexible links secured toand between said lever and said s outs, said arms being hollow and having apertures on the upperportions thereof adjacent their front and rear ends, and said links being inserted through said apertures and interiorly traversing said arms.

invention,

' 'LEs r En 'Il. SPEAKER. Ramses-s CITED 

